New Year, New You?
New Year, new you? I always used to be full of good intentions for the New Year: 1) exercise more, 2) meditate every day, 3) get organised, 4) take up paddle-boarding - you get the idea. Three days in, I was always full of self-loathing because I couldn’t stick to my resolutions and to console myself of my failure I’d go and eat the biggest bar of chocolate I could find and tell myself I’d try again next week.
The problem wasn’t the planning or the failing, the problem was the way I felt about myself. Over the years, I have come to know myself a little better and I am happy to live with being a little disorganised at times and having such a busy day that I fall asleep during my evening meditation and not being able to paddle-board (although one day…😁). There are also a couple of life-hacks that can help you stick to your intended goals:
Gift Yourself - Don’t look at your intentions as goals, view them as gifts to yourself. I bet if you promised someone you love that you would treat them every week to a day out or a favourite snack, you would keep that promise. We aren’t great at self-love, however seeing your intention as a gift to yourself will help you keep it; for example, ‘I’m gifting myself a yoga class every week this year’, ‘I’m gifting myself a cup of tea and 20 minutes reading my book every day’, ‘I’m gifting myself a weekly massage to relieve stress’ - we all love a gift!
Build up stamina - Start small. One kept intention is better than 10 you didn’t keep. There are lots of apps now like Noom that delve into the psychology of habit making and tell you that making a small thing each day a habit is easier than trying to change everything in your life at once.
Affirm your intentions - Saying your intentions out loud or writing them down each day effects your efforts in maintaining your goals. This has roots in both scientific and spiritual forums, but the idea is that you say it as if it’s already happening and you are grateful for it, for example, ‘I am grateful that I have this moment to myself every week to help me recover and relax’. Give it a go, you’ll be amazed at the impact positive thinking can have on your life. If it’s difficult to do yourself, there are loads of affirmation coaches on social media sites that can give you more tips on affirmations; take a look at Rachel Jackson, a mindset and manifesting coach on TikTok (@rachelmanifestingcoach), who has lots of great ways to stay positive.
Whatever your good intentions are this year, be kind to others, but don’t forget to be kind to yourself and have a great year in 2023!
-Clare at Soul Aromatics ❤️
